CHAPTER 31: Satisfied?

Kaoru had to laugh out loud after repeatedly glancing at Kenshin's face. Befuddled, Kenshin asked, "What?"

Still, Kaoru laughed. "You can't keep your smile off your face!" she said, wiping tears from her eyes. "You look so adorable!"

Kenshin raised an eyebrow and shook his head, yet even he felt the smile widening even more. "You can't expect me to be sullen when I'm seeing you again for the first time!" he whined, attempting to pout, but the smile on his face was already fixed firmly.

"I know," Kaoru said. She threw her arms around Kenshin. "I missed you too."

Kenshin pulled her closer, reveling at the scent of jasmine. "I'm glad you're back." They broke apart, then Kenshin took her suitcase from her. "Let me take this for you," he said, walking faster when Kaoru attempted to get it from him. "Let's have dinner?"

Kaoru smiled. "Of course," she said. She walked beside him, and together, they walked out of the airport.

"It's really nice of you to meet me at the airport, Kenshin," Kaoru said over the last pieces of their dessert.

Kenshin shook his head. "It was nothing, Kaoru."

"How did you know I was arriving today?" Kaoru asked. "I didn't even tell Tae."

Kenshin grinned. "I have my ways," he said, exaggerating a mysterious look that Kaoru laughed.

"Just admit it, you missed me."

"I thought I already did, back at the airport?"

Kaoru laughed again and scooped the last piece of cake on her plate. "Thank you anyway, Kenshin."

Kenshin looked at her indulgently. "You look better," he remarked when she finished her dessert.

"You think so?" Kaoru said, touching her face slightly. "I rather thought I became darker."

"Tanned is the correct word, Kaoru," Kenshin said. "And if you think that's made you ugly, I have to stop you there." He smiled. "You look more wonderful."

Kaoru felt a blush creeping over her face. "Thank you," she said, and to cover her face, she took her glass of wine and sipped as slowly as she could.

Kenshin took his as well and sipped the wine. He had survived the three months without her with reports from the Oniwabanshu (Okay, he will admit at some point that he had her followed, again. He was worried about her, that was all. Not stalking, he emphasized to another voice in his head) and the occasional video calls. Though the pictures and the grainy images of her through the screen showed her, it was really different to see her face to face.

The three months that kept her away from him simply made him more appreciative of her. She was tanned, but that was unsurprising given that she had stayed at a tropical country. Instead of making her ugly, as she was most likely supposing, the darkened color made her features more striking. She lost a little weight, but that only defined her figure more. She was much more cheerful, much happier than the last time that he saw her, and he was only thankful that time had done its part to heal her soul.

He had simply missed her, that was all.

"So, what have you been doing when I was away?" Kaoru asked him, breaking his reverie.

Kenshin shrugged. "Oh, this and that," he said vaguely. Kaoru raised an eyebrow. "Work, as usual. You wouldn't be interested in it much."

"You make it sound so boring," Kaoru laughed.

"It is boring," Kenshin affirmed. "Paperwork and meetings are never that interesting, not in a million years."

Kaoru chuckled. "Being a businessman doesn't interest you anymore?"

Kenshin shrugged again. "I learned to be a businessman because I wanted to help Akira. It wasn't exactly what I would have wanted, but it gave me something useful to do."

Kaoru turned pensive. "I wonder, what would you have been if you did not become a businessman like Akira? Would you have been different?"

Kenshin sipped a little wine while thinking of his answer. "I..." He put the glass down, and swirled the remaining wine a little. "To be honest, I haven't exactly thought so deeply about that. I've been too focused on repaying my debt of gratitude to Akira to even think about myself."

Kaoru leaned forward, intrigued. "But you have thought about something, right?"

A life of his own. "I confess I had little opportunity or inclination to," Kenshin mused, looking down at the dark red wine in his glass. "For most of my life I've been living for other people, at the start, for the yakuza, and then for Akira." He looked up and met her dark eyes, and then slowly smiled. "But I do remember something when I was younger. I once looked on a happy family, a father, a mother... and a young child in their arms. And I remembered a sudden thought I had then. If only I had something like that."

Kaoru looked into Kenshin's bright, violet eyes, and felt once again the heat on her cheeks. She leaned back on her seat and touched her cheeks with her hands.

Kenshin, on his part, felt similarly flushed, realizing what he said, and he stuttered as he attempted again to explain and continue, "I mean, I wanted to be part of a family then. Not... not have a family..." Seeing the deepening blush on Kaoru's face, Kenshin bit his lip and hastily took a large gulp of water. Stop talking, idiot! he chastised himself.

Kaoru chuckled at the contrite look on Kenshin's face. "What are you doing, Kenshin? I was just wondering if you wanted to be a teacher or a lawyer or anything aside from being a businessman! I wasn't asking you out."

Kenshin choked on his water at the last statement, which made Kaoru laugh harder. "Kenshin!" she exclaimed as he clumsily apologized and wiped the water he spat out.

"You make me so nervous!" Kenshin tried to blame her, but it only prolonged her laughter, which was so infectious that soon he was also chuckling along with her.

After their fit of laughter had passed, Kaoru smiled at him. "I am glad there was a family like that for you," she said. "At least once, you had a dream for yourself."

Kenshin smiled back, and lifted his wine glass at her.

"Ken-san!" Both Kenshin and Kaoru looked towards the direction of the voice. Kaoru noticed that Kenshin brightened as soon as he recognized the owner of the voice, and made her look closely at the person approaching them.

Kenshin stood and extended a hand towards the person who had by now reached them. "Megumi-dono," he said in greeting. Instead of shaking his hand, however, "Megumi-dono" held his hand to pull him close and kiss him on both of his cheeks.

"It's good to see you again," the woman named Megumi said as she released him.

"You say that as if I didn't see you last week," Kenshin said, smirking, and Megumi laughed. Kaoru raised an eyebrow and hid the skeptical expression on her face with the glass of wine she lifted to her lips. Kenshin turned to her and introduced her to Megumi. "Kaoru-dono, do you remember the doctor who attended Akira when he had his accident? This is Doctor Megumi Takani. Megumi-dono, Kaoru Kamiya, my and Akira's friend."

Kaoru stood as well, putting down her glass of wine and extending her hand to the woman. "It's a pleasure to meet you," she said, a little bit insincerely. Quickly feeling apologetic, she hoped that she was the only one who heard her odd tone of voice. She felt secure in Kenshin's cheerful face, but when she faced Megumi, she saw an inscrutable expression that made her uncomfortable.

"Likewise, Miss Kamiya," Megumi Takani said. "Can I call you Kaoru?"

Kaoru shrugged. "Sure."

Megumi smiled at her (again, Kaoru felt uneasy when she did), and turned to Kenshin. "I'm sorry, I can only say hello, Kenshin. Let's catch up sometime, yes? I'll make sure I'll have more time to chat. Give my regards to Akira." With a small nod towards Kaoru, and a wide smile for Kenshin, Megumi left them in a last sway of her long hair.

Kenshin and Kaoru sat again. "Megumi Takani?" Kaoru asked Kenshin, the eyebrow raised in mock exaggeration.

"Yes, you remember Akira's doctor?" Kenshin said, smiling (rather too innocently, Kaoru thought). "I accompanied Akira in his check-ups with her, and we became close, especially since she correctly guessed I would always be the one reminding Akira about her instructions about the painkillers and the therapy."

"You got close?" Kaoru asked, hearing a little high pitch in her voice that she didn't particularly like.

Kenshin nodded. "She is an excellent doctor, and a kind one, underneath that haughty aura she might have impressed you with. You'll like her."

Kaoru avoided challenging that statement by drinking more wine. She was feeling its effects now, as she felt her heartbeat become faster and the blush seemingly permanent on her cheeks. Noting her changed demeanor, Kenshin asked in concern, "Are you tired, Kaoru? Do you want to go home now?"

Kaoru quickly nodded. "Yes please." With that, Kenshin called for the bill, and as soon as their dinner was paid, they walked out the restaurant.

Kaoru sighed at the cool wind whipping on her reddened cheeks. This is the wine, this is the wine, this is the wine, she repeated over and over, but she was feeling inexplicably annoyed at Kenshin for some reason. It's the wine. I haven't had wine in a while, that's why I'm feeling like this.

"I got my secretary to drive over my car from the office. Do you... Can I drive you home?" Kenshin asked.

"No!" Kaoru said, too quickly that Kenshin was surprised. "I mean, you've already paid for my food, I shouldn't ask you to do more..."

"I wanted to, Kaoru, just like I am willing to drive you home if you want to," Kenshin replied.

Kaoru smiled (awkwardly, she thought, cringing at herself). "You must be tired too, Kenshin," she said, taking her suitcase from him. "You'd better get home yourself, so you can relax before work tomorrow."

Kenshin opened his mouth to say something, but Kaoru spotted a taxi coming their way. She flagged it, waving her hand quite vigorously. "There's a taxi!" she squealed quite exuberantly.

"Yes, there is," Kenshin said glumly as he watched the taxi swerve towards them and stop in front of them.

Quickly opening the door of the taxi, and noticing in the periphery of her view that Kenshin had tried to do that for her, Kaoru turned to him and said, "Thanks for the dinner, Kenshin." She shoved in the suitcase in the backseat and got in.

"Call me as soon as you get home, okay?" Kenshin said. Kaoru just nodded, and rolled up the window. Soon, the taxi moved into the traffic, and out of his sight.

Kenshin stood for a while where Kaoru left him, longer than was necessary, long after the taxi she was in disappeared out of his sight. The dinner started well enough, but it ended somehow unsatisfactorily. He wondered why, or where it went wrong. He sighed, finally moving towards the car park when the frost got through his clothes.

A bit of consolation came through when he reminded himself that she was now in the same country as he was. I'll see her again, he promised himself, comforting himself somehow.

Kaoru, for her part, was constantly scolding herself for how she acted. I must have looked so weird, so unreasonable, so... she ran out of horrible words to say to herself. Why did I do that? is the question that constantly ran through her mind. She couldn't answer it. She didn't even understand what she was feeling. Just like Kenshin, she felt unsatisfied about the dinner that started well enough.

Unlike them, however, somebody else in the shadows was fully satisfied.

"Kaoru!" Tae squealed as soon as Kaoru entered the Akabeko the following day, before the restaurant opened. She ran towards Kaoru and flung herself in Kaoru's arms, almost knocking her off-balance. "You didn't say you came back!"

"I wanted to surprise you," Kaoru said, releasing the older woman. She looked over Tae's shoulder to see Tsubame shyly smiling behind her tray, as usual. Even the brat Yahiko showed up. She walked up and distributed the souvenirs she bought for them and the others in the Akabeko. "Sae sends her love, and says the Sukibeko is doing just fine even away from here."

Tae rolled her eyes. "Of course she'd brag again, that sister of mine," she muttered, and Kaoru laughed. "Glad to see she took good care of you. When did you come back?" Tae asked.

"Just yesterday," Kaoru said. "You don't mind if I work tomorrow, do you? I still feel a little bit jetlagged."

"Whoever said you should go back to work as soon as you landed?" Tae scolded her. "Go back next week, when you're completely rested."

"Thanks boss," Kaoru said.

"Have you seen Kenshin?" Tae slyly inquired.

Kaoru laughed. "What made you ask about him?"

Tae shrugged. "Now that you're un-engaged..." she trailed off, but the look on her face was so suggestive that Kaoru kept on laughing.

"I shouldn't tell you this, because it would definitely blow your mind," Kaoru said, wiping the tears from her eyes, "but he fetched me from the airport yesterday."

Tae's eyes went wide as saucers. Then she grinned. "I knew it!"

Kaoru raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Tae shrugged. "I didn't know exactly that he was going to get you from the airport, but I knew he was going to do something like that."

Kaoru shook her head incredulously. "You're impossible."

"I'm just saying, Kaoru, Kenshin's a lot more your style than Akira," Tae said. "With the rumors going around..." Tae's eyes widened at the words that came out thoughtlessly from her lips and slapped a hand over them.

That gesture of Tae's alerted Kaoru. "What rumors?" she probed.

Tae put her lips together tightly and tried to avoid her eyes. Kaoru knit her eyebrows together and forced Tae to look at her. "What rumors, Tae?" she repeated.

Tae sighed. "You're going to hear, or read pretty soon anyway," she said, going into the manager's room. After a while she came back, holding a newspaper in her hands. She deposited it in Kaoru's lap. "I'm sorry, love."

Kaoru looked down at the newspaper, and gasped at the headline.

"Good morning, love," Tomoe whispered into the still-asleep Akira's ear. Akira smiled, and sleepily replied, "Good morning, love."

A pillow thwacked his face, making him groan. "Time to get up, don't you think?" Tomoe's laughter followed her into the bathroom, while Akira took the pillow from his face and grudgingly raised his torso from the bed.

"Why do you always wake so early?" Akira whined. Tomoe peeked out from the bathroom door and raised an eyebrow at him.

"Is it still early if the sun's already shining on your butt?" she laughed, moving out of view and avoiding the pillow Akira threw at her.

"You're right, of course, but why do I have to get up early if there's nothing to do?" Akira yawned, grabbing a bathrobe from the edge of the bed.

"Have you forgotten? Kenshin's going to call in a few hours, so you have to be ready," Tomoe answered amidst the sound of the shower in the bathroom. "My agent's going to call soon as well, so we both have to be ready."

"Well it isn't as if they'd smell us through the screen," Akira continued grumbling, picking up their clothes from the floor, as fast as his casts allowed him. He smiled as he recalled last night, chuckling to himself a little.

"Still, we have to be presentable, you know," Tomoe called out. "We have reputations to uphold."

Akira scoffed, but like anything else, he agreed with Tomoe. Lately, all he'd ever done was agree with her. Thankfully, they agreed on a lot of things.

He was thankful for the three months that they've agreed to spend together. Because of his injuries, which in hindsight was very idiotic of him to have gotten, Tomoe had made a way for her to care for him herself. With Kenshin handling the company work, and occasionally bringing him to his medical check-ups, he was able to spend more time with Tomoe, more than he wished for, more than he thought possible. It was just him, and Tomoe. And it had been bliss. In their small cottage in the country, far from the scrutiny of society, even from the glare of television or the internet, it had been total bliss.

Being in retreat had been Tomoe's idea, after all. He supposed she was keen to get away from everything, society, social media, and the television. It could have been because of her occupation, he thought. At first it unsettled him that he didn't know or hear anything, but he soon eased into the silence.

Of course, he still thought about Kaoru, and the pain he had caused her made him feel guilty all the time, but with her away and healing, he had little to worry about, for now. He wondered if she had already come back, but he was certain Kenshin would tell him. He smiled at the thought of his friend, who had always been loyal and dear to him throughout everything.

Slender arms suddenly encircled him. "Thinking of me, I hope?" Tomoe whispered into his ear.

Akira rolled his eyes. "The universe doesn't revolve around you, you know."

"Well, just last night you said I am your universe," Tomoe said teasingly, her lips almost touching his cheek. "Or did I hear wrong?"

Akira turned his head to catch her lips in a kiss. "You are right, as usual," he said. Tomoe laughed and helped him wash, with much water splashing and cajoling on her part, and whining and kissing on his part. Their playfulness continued even while Tomoe helped Akira dress.

When they finally got out, Akira noticed that Tomoe's cellphone was lighting up. Before he could get it, Tomoe snatched it up quickly, and with a wink, said, "Let me just take this outside." After helping him down on the bed, she tiptoed outside the bedroom, closing the door behind her.

If there was one thing that bothered Akira, however, it was the calls that Tomoe was making and taking. Akira frowned at the closed door. He didn't want to pry, but lately, every time her phone rang, she hid herself away from him, and when she'd come back, he'd sense that something was off. She'd always smile and wave away his concern, but he noticed a strange look in her eyes whenever she thought he wasn't looking. He did try to listen in, but whenever he did, he was either too late, or she intentionally went further in the room out of his earshot.

Akira decided to listen in, to know what she was hiding (again, he thought ruefully). Giving her a few minutes' headstart, he helped himself up, and hopped as quietly as he could towards the door. Cautiously, he turned the knob and pushed open the door a little bit.

"...give me a little more time, Wilson-san, please." Tomoe's pleading tone surprised him, then enraged him. "You can't just..." She paused, listening closely to the voice on the phone, her left hand gripping her arm holding the phone tight, looking more and more miserable the longer the voice on the other side was talking. "I can't do anything here," she replied, almost in a whisper, then the angry tones of the other person burst out again. Looking at her devastated face, Akira couldn't hold back anymore, and angrily pushed the door wider. Startled, Tomoe quickly muttered, "I'll call you back," and hung up the call.

"What are you hiding again from me, Tomoe?" Akira wanted to walk directly up to her, but he could only hobble towards her.

"I'm not..." Tomoe's pale face only infuriated him more, and spurred his last few steps towards her. He held her shoulders tightly, and exerted just enough self-control not to shake her from her stubbornness.

"You're lying to me again," Akira said. "Whatever it is that's troubling you, tell me, and I can help you."

Tomoe shook her head, but tears threatened to fall from her eyes. "No, you shouldn't be involved in what I'm in now," she wailed. "Not again, I am not harming you again."

This time, Akira did shake her hard. "You are not going to make the same mistakes you made five years ago, Tomoe!" he almost shouted at her. "Tell me what it is, please!" He exhaled harshly when he saw the fear in her eyes. Akira pulled her into his arms, this willful spirit, who had finally relented and held onto him as her sobs shook him. "Can't you trust me this time?" he whispered. "Please?"

Tomoe looked up to him with teary eyes, but before she could say anything more, they both turned to the sound of a car approaching the cottage. A few moments later, an urgent knock was heard on the door. Tomoe struggled to move away from Akira, but he held her hand firmly, and she was left with no choice but to help him walk towards the door to open it for Kenshin.

"Akira," Kenshin said, surprised, then wary. "I need to speak to Tomoe alone."

"If you have to say something, say it in front of me too," Akira said, resolute. Kenshin looked worriedly at Tomoe, who only sighed and nodded slightly. He went in and closed the door behind him.

"What's the problem?" Akira insisted as Kenshin hesitated and looked again at Tomoe. Akira's eyes narrowed at that. "Don't leave me out. I can help, and I will help."

Kenshin sighed. "I told you, Tomoe," he whispered. He pulled out a newspaper and opened it to a certain page. "I'm sorry, Akira."

Akira took the newspaper, and among all the print on the page, his eyes fell immediately on a section.

Did Multi-Billionaire Scion Cheat Middle-Class Fiancée with International Superstar?

A/N: Another sorry is in order, I think, but for every time I do this, I don't update as fast as we'd both like... I'm truly very very sorry for the readers who had waited very very very long for updates to this fic. For the past year, I tried to work on an update, but things happened (my laptop died, and all my files with it), and I was dissatisfied with what I wrote before that I threw them all out. I thought of giving up and ending this story with Kenshin and Kaoru on the airport. Rereading that part, I rather thought that would be a nice, vague ending for this story, but the thought of having promised that I finish this fic and having kept you waiting for nothing hung in my conscience. Plus, looking at my story, there are some loose ends I haven't fully written about yet. If there was one upside to this pandemic, it's making us stop for a while and think about what really matters and appreciating the little things we have taken for granted. It gave me time to think about the second half of this fic, which has been in my mind for so long, and try to flesh them out towards the real ending I have been envisioning for this fic.

Again, I'm sorry, and thank you for your patience!